The present invention is directed to a method, apparatus and article for displaying targeted content on web pages, and more particularly, to a method for predicting the group membership of individual visitors based on information obtained at the time of the initial page request to a web site to display the targeted content on the home page or other pages displayed to the visitor.
The Internet is clearly becoming the place of choice to obtain information on companies and products. Companies in turn are making efforts to provide content targeted to the individual visitors to their web sites. For example, many home pages attempt to highlight many different offerings, such as advertisements targeting students, investors, home product buyers, and business buyers. However, the majority of methods currently in use require that a visitor actively take steps to personalize a page before targeted content can be shown. On a portal site, logging in is not always feasible or desirable because the primary purpose of the home page of the portal is to quickly move visitors to other websites. For many visitors, the process of creating a profile and logging in wastes more time than the advantage of viewing personalized content.
There are currently several techniques in use for personalization of web content. In the registration-based personalization technique mentioned above, each visitor is issued a visitor name and password, which is linked to a profile stored by the server. The visitor logs in to receive personalized content. The time required to obtain the password and id and the difficulty in remembering them discourages visitors from logging onto many web sites. In addition, many visitors do not want to provide the personal information needed to create the profile.
Another technique is known as implicit personalization, in which web content is personalized without relying upon information explicitly provided by the visitor. One type of implicit information commonly used is visitor behavior, such as viewing pages or purchasing items. One example of this technique is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,338,066, which discloses a method for predicting a given web surfer's behavior based on the behavior of past surfers. The method requires that the surfer take a certain number of actions and based on these initial actions content is displayed based on predicted future actions.
A third technique is based on locally stored preferences. In this method, the web application sets a cookie on the visitor's computer, which remembers certain settings, as explicitly set by the visitor. Reliance on the placement of a cookie is uncertain at best and in addition, privacy questions have been raised with regard to obtaining information about visitors from cookies, with or without the visitor's knowledge.
A fourth technique is known as location-based personalization. In this technique the visitor's location is determined and a page specific to that location is presented to the visitor. The location may be determined by explicit visitor selection, or through a service which returns location information based on IP address or other information obtained from the header accompanying the web page request.
Implementation of one or more of these techniques may use matching engines such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,289,340 issued to iXmatch, Inc.; and U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,334,127 and 6,321,221, assigned to Net Perceptions, Inc.
All of these mechanisms, except for location-based personalization, require that a profile be maintained, either by the server, by the client, or both. Location-based personalization is limited in that it is unable to distinguish between multiple groups residing in the same physical location, or to distinguish between types of visitor activities that the same visitor might wish to perform at different times.
While not directed to personalization, U.S. Pat. No. 6,167,441 uses header information to determine the display capabilities of a browser and thereafter direct the browser to a URL that contains a version of the requested document within the display capability. The current intended purpose of the header information is to alter the markup language (code) that is sent to the browser so that the page is rendered correctly. The content itself is typically not changed based on header information.
There is a need for a technique that offers the benefits of the first three types of personalization (e.g. role-based delivery of content) without maintaining a profile of any kind for the visitor, and without requiring the visitor to log in or take any initial actions, so that targeted content can be provided on the home page or other web pages displayed to the visitor.
In addition, as more of the general public is able to access the Internet both at home and at work, the current trend is to significantly reduce the size and complexity of the home pages to make it easier for these new visitors. As a consequence, there will not be as much space available to advertise product offerings. Therefore, a system is needed that would maximize the use of this space by targeting content based on membership in a visitor group, while remaining completely transparent to the visitor.